Officials in Oak Brook and Elmhurst are feeling pretty good after recently being named among the nation’s 10 safest suburbs by SmartAsset, a personal finance website.
SmartAsset used multiple metrics to review and analyze 360 suburbs in major metropolitan areas. Those metrics included violent crime rates and property crime rates based on FBI data as well as rates of adults engaging in excessive drinking and deaths related to traffic accidents and drug poisonings from county health rankings.
To be considered for the ranking, each suburb had to have a population of at least 5,000 and be within a 15- to 45-minute drive of one of the nation’s 100 largest cities.
Elmhurst and Oak Brook placed eighth and ninth, respectively, in the rankings, which listed Lehi, Utah, which is about 30 miles south of Salt Lake City, as the safest suburb in the country.
Elmhurst City Hall
Elmhurst Police Chief Mike McLean said being named one of the safest suburbs in the nation is “a tremendous honor that highlights our dedication to the numerous facets of public safety needs present in suburban communities.”
“The Elmhurst Police Department motto is ‘Providing the Best,’ which demonstrates our commitment to the highest standards of service and safety in our community,” McLean said. “I am incredibly proud Elmhurst’s longstanding tradition of top-notch public safety services, including the hard work of our officers and community partners, was recognized.”
McLean said he believes Elmhurst was able to be included on the list because many leaders over the years in Elmhurst city government and the police department have focused on public safety through high service expectations, the use of smart crime-fighting technology, strong traffic safety efforts and a commitment to prevent and investigate crime to the fullest extent possible.
“Elmhurst is a leader in many public safety initiatives, including license plate reader technology to prevent and solve serious crimes,” he said. “We’ve implemented expanded traffic safety/DUI enforcement, police K9, crime scene forensics and public safety drone programs.”
McLean said Elmhurst also values its strong cooperation with neighboring police departments by working together as a team to address crime affecting the suburban region as a whole.
In neighboring Oak Brook, Police Chief Brian Strockis said he believes the village made the list of safest suburbs because of its pro-active policing philosophy, support from local elected officials, and a community that stands with the police department to keep the community safe.
“My initial reaction (to finding out Oak Brook was on the list) reinforced just how proud I am of the dedicated, dangerous and selfless work of the men and women of the Oak Brook police department,” he said.
“This community demands a pro-active, technology-driven, well-trained, physically/mentally fit police department, and that’s exactly what we are providing. We are on the cutting edge of effective modern-day policing and the results speak for themselves.”
Oak Brook Village Manager Greg Summers said the Village Board and staff are fully aligned in a shared vision of public safety as a premier responsibility.
“When a new police chief was selected a couple of years ago, the Village Board’s focus was on candidates’ ability to deter and solve crime to make Oak Brook the safest suburb in the Chicagoland area,” he said. “Couple that with prior budgeting efforts, which strengthened the village finances, thereby allowing the Village capacity to invest in the Police Department and cutting-edge technology to further enhance public safety.”
Oak Brook Village President Larry Herman said he was elated, but not surprised, to find out the village was included on the list of safest suburbs in the country.
“The current Oak Brook Village Board has been acutely focused on public safety,” he said.“We’ve made substantial investments in equipping our outstanding police department with the latest crime-fighting technology and tools they need to be more effective.”
Herman said Oak Brook’s expansive rollout of license plate reading cameras throughout the community has been especially effective.
“We’ve worked hard to rebuild morale in both our police and fire departments,” he said. “Oak Brook residents are deeply appreciative of our police and fire public servants.”
While officials in both Elmhurst and Oak Brook are proud of being recognized among the safest suburbs in the nation, nobody plans to rest on their laurels.
“While we continue to fight the challenges that state and federal policy thrust upon us, Oak Brook will do everything within our control to make certain that we are not a target of criminals, including pursuing, arresting, and prosecuting all offenders,” Summers said.
McLean said maintaining high-quality public safety requires continued community partnership for crime prevention, traffic safety, police officer recruitment, modern police training, and safety technology to address the fast-paced challenges of the future.
“I believe one of Elmhurst’s strongest attributes is our commitment to community policing,” he said. “Residents and department are working together as one team to keep our community safe. We devote much effort to communicate safety messaging through social media, neighborhood roll calls, and citizen police academy programs so residents can be ‘our eyes and ears.’ Residents trust to call the Elmhurst Police Department when they observe suspicious activity, thereby preventing crime.”
Herman simply said, “We will never let up on taking continuing steps to keep our community safe.”
Chuck Fieldman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
